Noni MacDonald

Noni E. MacDonald is a Canadian physician. She is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics and former Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Dalhousie University. In 2019, MacDonald was awarded the Order of Nova Scotia and Order of Canada.

Early life and education MacDonald earned her bachelor's degree at Queen's University in 1970. She moved to the University of Ottawa for her graduate studies, where she specialised in microbiology.

Career In 1981, MacDonald joined the faculty at the University of Ottawa, where she founded the Division of Infectious Diseases. That year she was a founding member of the World Health Organisation Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety, and has held various positions on technical committees and in training development since then. She remains on their Strategic Advisory Committee on Immunisation, which considers the demand for vaccines, as well as serving as a consultant for vaccine safety. As part of her work with the WHO MacDonald is developing the 2021 – 2030 Global Vaccine Action Plan.

Affiliations In 2004, with support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation she founded the Canadian Center for Vaccinology (CCfV). She has spoken about the dangers of vaccine hesitancy and how the internet permits the dangerous messaging of anti-vaxxers. At Dalhousie University, MacDonald teaches a course Addressing Evidence Denial in Public. MacDonald is interested in building the healthcare capacity of the developing world. She co-founded East Africa's MicroResearch, a program that looks to support local health providers. MicroResearch is modelled on principles from microfinance, developing solutions that are appropriate for the context and culture of African communities.

She was invested into the Order of Nova Scotia in 2019. That year she was also awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Society for International Health.

Selected publications Her publications include:

MacDonald has served as editor for the journals Paediatrics & Child Health and the Canadian Medical Association Journal, as well as acting as child health editor for the Oxford Research Encyclopaedia of Global Public Health. In 2004 the Canadian Paediatric Society founded the Noni MacDonald Award, which is given annually to researchers who have positively affected paediatrics. Personal life MacDonald is married with children. Alongside her research she enjoys skiing and pottery.